The Challenge designers are at it again with this month's theme of "Black and White". Collections are definitely in the mix with many accessories for your home. First up is a great pairing from !!Follow Us!! (the Happiness kitchen in black) and the ~*~ Inspired ~*~ (Shades of Gray set).

Many merchants offer discounts during the first week of the round, so be fast like a bunny.

Details abound in the happiness kitchen. I am thinking it will be perfect in Sound Stage One along with the industrial dish rack from Second Spaces!

The Ottoman with blanket is 4 prims and is loaded with 9 animations and props.

My outfit which I haven't really shown off too well is a new release from Ducknipple, the Overdress. It comes in a large variety of jumper colors with a hud that let's you change the short sleeved sweater color. Don't worry, this is my official "Black and White" outfit so you will be seeing it a lot in upcoming posts.

and here's BIG ADDENDUM! *wink*

As I was picking up the furniture I noticed the little hand icon. Oh my! What might this do?

Notecard? Noooooo :D. Experimentation is the key.

It does TONS of stuff. You can bake and slice and stir and more. Each activity places new items on the work counter and offers props to your inventory.

So, the happiness kitchen isn't "just" cute, it is a fun prop and I am doing a very happy little dance.

There is even a couples menu.

Now I didn't explore that too much but I did manage to round up a volunteer for this photo -- one that was happily dressed in white and gray already, you can't beat that.

I took more photos of cooking activities but you really need to explore all the possibilities yourself, so hop on over to !!Follow Us!! if you are a cooking kinda gal (or guy) who also loves grayscale.

Berry's meme this week is more of an adventure than a writing exercise and I have to admit I haven't been getting a lot of adventure these days. Aside from some filming and picking up a couple of hunt items, I have been a stay at home gal. It's easy to do when you have over fifty "sets" to take photos on - LOL. Both good and bad.

I had a just off the sewing machine sci-fi-esce cat suit from Blue Blood (many colors, optional mask and on the TATTOO layer!), so I decided to take a tour of some of the appropriate locales in my Photo Ops>Sci Fi folder -- and do a little inventory cleaning along the way.

My lead shot as you probably recognize is from INSOLICO. Next on to LPP neo where I crawled around in the murky water of a post apocalypse time.

I set myself a few extra challenges on the tour. No shadows (that current issues thing), the same size photo and no playing with the Windlight sliders. It was interesting but I think it worked pretty well.

This last shot if from Drill Factory which has been around for-e-ver. All these places have old builds but they are still picturesque and mood providing in their own right. And yes, sadly -- quite a few landmarks went into the trash as they were no more.

It's time to dust off your coquettishness; Lolitas in all variations line the walls in the current round at GENRE . This cutie has a steampunk air that appeals to me. The Gothic Lolita dress comes in a wide variety of tones and a hud to let you decide between color or black on the peplum area of the skirt. I chose peacock to coordinate with the very pretty Nevermore armchair. Both are from Senzafine: Curiosities & Accoutrements. You can find the chair at The Home Show until July 31.

Skimpy swimwear is of course part of the Riviera experience and this Thulu Cookini Peach from :{MV}: fits the bill in a semi-modest way *wink*.

The boats in the background are from TUFF, maker of rustic old boats. I remember wanting a rowboat SO badly when I lived in Winterfell. Alas I couldn't find one. The good news is now there are many to choose from. Check them out in the harbor at the expo.

I had fun with Windlight this morning. The "new rendering system" and I are not all that compatible. Not "me" of course, I am a compatible kinda gal, tis my graphics card that isn't happy. Shadows and mesh often have issues with constant and annoying flicker. It also seems to depend a bit on the Windlight setting. A puzzle that I hope is remedied soon.

For you Firestorm folks, all those new "Places" Windlight settings are the ones I made years ago when I was touring the grid. When they appeared in my viewer I was wondering as I hadn't seen them in a long while, but knew they were on my computer 'somewhere'. A friend confirmed he has them also. It is nice to have them back. Named after favorite sims where I took many photos, sadly many are no longer around. That's the nature of things in our virtual land.

The Boats and Bikinis Expo is going strong and likely will be busy this weekend. I love the ambiance and the Riviera feel. Get on some posh duds and browse the shops. And don't miss the hunt going on.

In this photo:

* a "Keep Calm and Stay Anchored" wooden plaque from Beach Street, a hunt item.
* the Marilyn Dress (four colors by hud) from Luas Urban Style.
* the Vintage Reading Nook from the Little House of Curios.

I want to give a special thumbs up to the Little House of Curioswho I had never heard of before -- one great reason to visit special venue shopping events; there are so many undiscovered shops. Edit: OK. Egg on face here *wink*. I not only had heard of the Little House of Curios, I had featured some items from there from The Challenge. So that was just me being extra dense.

This is original mesh. We don't see a lot of that these days and as an original mesh creator I want to give a little extra credit to the folks that have done their homework, put in their time and can make their own goodness from scratch. There is plenty of room for the people who are superb texturers; they are valued too. I do wish though that more folks would move into that "original" camp.

This is lovely work, well designed and amazingly all separate pieces (thankfully also coalesced in a set so I didn't have to do too much work *wink*) so you can use each item numerous times where needed. The prim count on the whole set including the chair, table, wall star and all those decor items is 22. The flower mesh is from another designer, is both lovely and popular and was amazingly given credit on the vendor poster.

Goodness comes in all forms at the Boat and Bikini Expo -- not necessarily only boats and bikinis. In this photo -- a casual summer dress from Luas Urban Style and a terrifically fun fishing prop from CHEZ MOI FURNITURES.

The fishing stool has a fun animation and the bucket of fish is separate so you can use it in other locales. The sign is very clever with lots of character.

The Boats and Bikinis Expo opens mid afternoon (officially open at 3:30 - GO). The build is great fun to roam, the stores full of pretty buyables. Boats in the harbor add ambiance, thoughts of adventure and outdoor shopping. I will have plenty to show you over the coming days. This is just a teaser.

Along with the great photo ops and gentle breezes there is another superb hunt. If you went on the Under the Sea Expo Hunt, you know the drill. Randomness reigns. No two hunt paths are the same. You need to collect the gifts IN ORDER! This time you will be looking for suitcases. Suitcases are large this being the pull along flight attendant style, but what I gather from the chatter is that not all suitcases will be in the tiny shops.

Then of course there is the very large boat area ---- SOOOOO easy stops and harder ones I am guessing. Once again there are TP boards with all the shop logos set up so getting from point A to point B is easy enough. Find the Office of Tourism starting location from the TP boards (smaller than last time but obvious) and begin your journey.

Shown above are two of the hunt prizes. The super cute one piece swimsuit with curly side ties from Dead Dollz is one of several colors in a random hunt prize generator. The framed artwork hales from Ampersand Photography; the lower left item is the hunt prize.

The hair in my top photo releases SATURDAY from EMO-tions; look for Chloe.

Back from break (a longer one than it seemed thanks to the miracles of scheduled blog posts) but not in world, I checked Berry's meme for the week. Bucket lists. Hmmmm. I did have a few things on my RL list like growing a cantaloupe (not all that easy where I live) but accomplished that one a couple of years ago. OK; not a big cantaloupe but a cantaloupe.

I can only think of one thing that I could put on my list -- having accomplished a lot in my SL lifetime *wink*. That would be dancing in a burlesque show. Chandra however tells me it is the most difficult thing she has ever done and SHE makes rigged mesh clothing from scratch. Sooooo -- maybe not.

As I was writing this I thought of a couple of things that fall outside the realm of personal accomplishment because they are in the hands of others. I would like to be on the cover of a magazine. The other we'll just leave alone for now. If it happens, I'll let ya know.

Rather than not do the challenge altogether I thought I would comment on Berry's list and note the ones I have done and the ones I so would never do. Fun.

Make a custom skin for myself! NOT a photoshop gal. I did try long ago, working with a creative commons type template. Just not my thing.

Dance with a Linden and/or Hamlet! Not much into the celeb thing; I usually dance alone and not all that often.

Learn how to make something amazing and mind-blowing in mesh!Accomplished I think with the two newest house builds (one not quite finished). I, at least, am impressed.

Go to at least 5 good live shows! Accomplished.

Play a part in an SL play! Most likely not. I have acted in a RL movie though so that might count if we do the crossover realities thing. It is pretty much guaranteed that you haven't seen it *wink*.

Have an inworld Art Gallery of some of my work and do some really artistic shots for it! Accomplished and now no more, but fun.

Create just one image that I like completely and not be able to find some kind of flaw in it! Accomplished several times. I am evidently not as picky.Own a sim! Accomplished albeit through a back door.

Make or be on a Podcast! Accomplished.

Go sailing in SL! Accomplished and yes, lots of fun.

Play some sort of sport in SL - I have been skiing if that counts; no group sports. No interest. LOVED the basketball photos that accompanied Berry's post. I went on the same tour looking for a really nice basketball court. Making one it seems is now on my todo list.

Things seem to be winding down. I have many ducks in my large family lined up in almost neat rows. It's July. I am thinking it is time for a break.

Meanwhile ---

I have had this furniture set up on my building pad for a few days now. It is from StoraxTree, part of a huge collection of new releases. There are always bargains going on at the store and venues that the owner takes part in, so if you are looking for deals, it is a good bet you will find something here.

Most to all items come with a resize script for easy adjustments. The texturing is very well done and the variety vast.

This bench comes with a clever animation that has you tapping out time impatiently. Of course MY hands end up in my thighs eventually -- that super long arm thing, but I am guessing that move will make it into a movie one day.

I won't lie. Even before delving into the blogger box, I already knew my favorite Amacci Hair Fair release. I had seen it while doing my tour of every shop. So pretty, for me it has a bit of an oriental flare so I added some Ginko earrings from KOSH and stood out on my new balcony with a great view. I even turned on depth of field for a dreamlike effect.

This is Luna -- in this case the dark copper color. There are five new releases from Amacci for Hair Fair.

Since I have the vendor photo and I already broke my personal vendor
photo rule this week, I will add it here so you can see which is YOUR
favorite.

Long ago and very far away in my childhood days I had a bit of magazine fame in a towel. Damn I was young then - LOL. I thought of that when I put out the new spa-esce outdoor rock shower from Trompe Loeil for COLLABOR88.

Today I saw a post that the FEMBOY hunt just began. Not too much there for me, but I spied this towel costume by LOoLOo's (half towels for guy and both come in blue or pink) and I was set.

The shower set can do double duty as plants, bench with poses , towel rack and soap accessories are all non-linked items. So move, mix and match or use other places. Yeah! This set comes in other color styles.

It is the Second Anniversary for The Gallery Gift Shop. I had bookmarked the hunt announcement -- and then, ya know how it is -- I forgot about it. So a trip over late Tuesday eve was in order. I don't go on many hunts these days; no time. But I wasn't going to miss this one as I remember its predecessor.

With lots of great gifts, a small location, plenty of buyables to peruse -- it is great fun. I especially like that the hunt items are all different, frames with photos of the gift's creator.

I am just showing you a few of the many nice items to be gathered. Go forth and hunt for those paintings.

With five new releases from MINA HAIR for Hair Fair, it was difficult to pick a favorite. I went with the singleton updo as there are so many times when having your hair up in a photo solves all sorts of problems.

This is Laura, a pretty stacked topknot bun, made in a casual way with loose tendrils here and there. One very nice feature of MINA HAIR is that you can buy a fatpack hud that lets you change one hair into a huge assortment of colors. Inventory control; most of us need it.

When I first began to study art, I was fascinated with chiaroscuro. This photo isn't quite that, but the feel is similar.

This is the Vanessa Set from Atelier Visconti at The Designer Warehouse. There is a color (four) and pattern (animal prints) HUD for your decorating pleasure. I went with red velvet -- I mean it IS Gothic here *wink*.

I love these studded heels from Ducknipple. Tons (and I do mean tons) of colors to choose from via hud. The are simply called "studded pumps". Bodysuit also by Ducknipple.

Whenever I need something that I think of as "posh" I look in my Vanity Hair files. I have a few favorites that I can search for by name and many in that specialty category.

There are three new and very different from each other Hair Fair releases from Vanity Hair. I chose this one because it is definitely in that specialty category -- a hair you remember.

As I perused the colors in the Sonata folder I saw some new additions. Ah HA! Happily there was also a texture that explained these were "glam colors". I am thinking they are new; that or I completely overlooked them previously (it can happen).

I zipped back over to the fair location (it is actually Friday as I write this) and saw that the pack of glam colors is indeed one of the options for buying. I like these new hair textures! Definitely glamorous and modelesce *wink*.

My earrings are from Eclectica. House in the background from Barnesworth Anubis. Both VERY upscale.

I had to smile at myself as I JUST found the notecard explaining that the G colors are indeed new. Since that notecard asked to please show all three styles, I am going to paste in the vendor photo below. Not my usual thing, but I aim to please when possible and I have at least twenty more new releases (not all hair) to unpack *wink*.

The new Branch Chairs area available in Greenleaf, Blueleaf,
and Redleaf!

Each chair features all new exclusive poses from Adorkable
Peapod of Adorkable Poses, and their whimsical design makes a unique
artistic statement in any room of your home, inside or outdoors!

I was very happy to see that Adorkable Peapod hasn't quit working altogether!

My outfit is from Ducknipple featured a couple of days ago. A couple clicks on the color change huds and magic - new look!

Also in the news are some new releases from [CIRCA] which you can find at The Home Show. This outdoor shower features both single and couple animations. The plants are separate from the build so they can be moved as you like or even used in another part of your home.

The colorful peacocks are so cute. They look hand painted and go very nicely in the new seaside cottage with the nautical theme.

With an overflowing inbox and many other projects on my todo list, I have decided to pick my favorite Hair Fair releases from the designers I frequently feature.

This is Discord Designs in Hair Fair 1. Known for Caribbean braids, dreds and other niche styles DD has been around a long while, perhaps as long as I have -- I know not. I do know that I purchased Discord Designs hair long before I added the shop to my featured designers column -- and that's a good thing.

The new releases for Hair Fair come in varying lengths and styles. Bobbi is my personal favorite. Now there are plenty of times when super short braids don't look that great on me, but the twisted topknot seems to solve that problem. I am sure this will be a favorite in the years to come.

There is also a very nice pack of unisex hair out as a gift, so don't miss that.

A quick shot of what I was wearing when I typed this, another new release from Discord Designs at Hair Fair. Texture change wrap? Yep, you got it.

How do you deal with criticism?

If it is well intentioned, I accept the comments and try to learn from them.

What’s the most infuriating thing other SL residents do?

Buy items on the Marketplace in order to give very bad (and sometimes hateful) reviews. Terrifically tacky as well as dishonest and unfortunately it happens a lot.
Which SL resident would you most like to have lunch with and why?

I'll stick with Marcus Inkpen. *wink*

Who would you say is your “anti” role model? Someone who serves as a warning rather than an inspiration?

I think we run into those people now an then in different guises. Whenever you have an immediate reaction to someone, there is a psychological and perhaps metaphysical -- hmm, let's call it presumption as I am not quite sure I actually go along with the premise in totality -- that you are actually encountering your shadow self. The idea is to learn from that. Happily I haven't had many SL occasions that fit in the category.

What was something you used to enjoy, but was ruined for you?

There was a forum long ago that I was very active in. Some folks came along and stirred up all kinds of trouble PURPOSFULLY to get the group disbanded. They were doing it for spiteful and greedy reasons as it turned out. By the time most everyone had left, the full story came out.

What’s something you want to do that you’d be embarrassed to tell other people about?

Can't think of a thing - LOL. I guess if I really wanted to do it, I would.

What’s the oddest term of endearment you’ve ever used or that someone’s used for you?
Been SO long I can't remember :D.
Have you ever fallen in love with another SL resident?

No, but I did have a few Internet "romances" long ago. Dire. Perhaps that is why my answer is "No".

Describe a time/event in your slife that you’re nostalgic for.

Well since anyone who reads these memes or watched my interview (you know I never posted on that) KNOW about trivia and hair camping at Calla, I will say my time on the New Toulouse Bayou. I really loved it there until the lag got to me. Most of the area is gone now, but there are still two sims in the group, the Bayou being one of them. I haven't visited lately. Perhaps I should.

With lots of great gifts and dollarbies at Hair Fair, these are my personal favorites. This color change hair with beads tops my list. Find it at Gauze. Find the links to the stores in my previous post with SLULS or just keep these in mind as you shop.

My title is a bit misleading. OK, it is a lie. No rest for the wicked or the compulsive *wink*. But accomplishments are good. AND, as I write this post it is almost time for rest and relaxation mode. Yeah!

My outfit at least makes it look like I have been lazing. Slightly sloppy, boy jeans with wide bells make shoe fitting easy, a good thing. Both jeans and sweater (sold separately) are color change by hud, so a plethora of permutations (oh that sounds fancy) enhances your wardrobe with just a click or two.

The maker as you may have guessed is Ducknipple; the new releases to look for -- Casual Jeans and Roomie Sweater.

A new Hair Fair release from Discord Designs was my choice of the afternoon. You will see my personal favorite DD hair tomorrow, one post in my long list of completed and scheduled Hair Fair articles *wink*. This style comes in two versions, one for bustier gals. Clever.

My necklace is one of a release set from KOSH for Boys of Summer. Both gal and guy sizes are included in the packs. Look for the CORADUS NECKLACE V3.

My location is the new Trompe Loeil Seaside Cottage which features stilts for a better view if you are lucky enough to have one -- or can MAKE one (we have such power in SL). I especially like the large deck and the lattice work thoughout. Lots of little hanging lamps give this a bit of an oriental flair -- at least for me. So, happily I moved the furniture from the previous house at this location into the new upscale abode. This is out for COLLABOR88.